Condition monitoring of urban rail transit by local energy harvesting

Mingyuan Gao, Yunwu Li*, Jun Lu, Yifeng Wang, Ping Wang, Li Wang

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleScientificpeer-review

22 Citations (Scopus)
140 Downloads (Pure)

Abstract

The goal of this study is to develop a vibration-based electromagnetic energy harvesting prototype that provides power to rail-side monitoring equipment and sensors by collecting wheel-rail vibration energy when the train travels. This technology helps power rail–side equipment in off-grid and remote areas. This article introduces the principle, modeling, and experimental test of the system, including (1) an electromagnetic energy harvesting prototype with DC-DC boost converter and lithium battery charge management function, (2) wireless sensor nodes integrated with accelerometer and temperature/humidity sensor, and (3) a vehicle-track interaction model that considers wheel out-of-roundness. Field test results, power consumption, Littlewood–Paley wavelet transform method, and feasibility analysis are reported. An application case of the technology is introduced: the sensor nodes of the wireless sensor network are powered by the electromagnetic energy harvester and lithium battery with DC-DC boost converter, thereby continuously monitoring the railway track state; based on the Littlewood–Paley wavelet analysis of measured railway track acceleration data, the abnormal signal caused by the wheel out-of-roundness can be detected.

Original languageEnglish
Number of pages16
JournalInternational Journal of Distributed Sensor Networks
Volume14
Issue number11
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2018

Keywords

  • Condition monitoring
  • energy harvesting
  • magnetic levitation
  • out-of-roundness
  • urban rail transit

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